He found the first shard hidden under a rock where his parents used to hide the castle keys when he was a boy. He found another behind a painting in the gallery, a room now filled with guards who moved like clockwork puppets. Goodbye, My King
Alaric stood in the rain, looking up at the levitating towers of his home. He had no army, no wealth, and no weapons—save for the knowledge of every secret passageway and hidden loose stone in the castle walls. Goodbye My King
One moonless night, the betrayal came not from an invading army, but from within. A man who mirrored Alaric's own face—an impostor—walked into the royal chambers. By dawn, the real King Alaric found himself thrown into the dirt outside his own gates, his crown stripped away and his name forgotten by guards who had been magically charmed or bribed into seeing only the new ruler. The Long Walk Back He found the first shard hidden under a
His journey was one of fragments. The impostor had shattered the royal gem—the source of the crown’s power—and scattered its pieces throughout the castle. Alaric's quest led him from the damp wine cellars to the dizzying heights of the royal chambers, solving puzzles that he himself had once commissioned for his amusement. He had no army, no wealth, and no
King Alaric was not a cruel man, but he was a comfortable one. He spent more time admiring the intricate carvings of his throne than he did walking the muddy streets of his kingdom. He believed his walls were impenetrable and his guards' loyalty was as solid as the stone they stood upon. He was wrong.